The Guardian view on this summer’s riots: courts can’t solve these problems alone | Editorial

The UK’s counter-extremism strategy isn’t working – and prison sentences won’t change that

There have been at least 1,400 arrests and more than 850 charges linked to the riots that swept England in August, with more in the pipeline. So far about 250 people have been jailed for their role in violent disorder fuelled by far-right activists, most of it aimed at asylum seekers and Muslims. The nature of these attacks, which included an attempt to set fire to a hotel, the desecration of graves and destruction of a Citizens Advice centre, meant custodial sentences were inevitable. The public, and particularly the targeted communities, needed to know that such brazen and racist aggression would be punished.

But nine weeks after the fatal stabbings of three children in Stockport – which were the catalyst for the riots – it is possible to take a step back and think about the longer-term causes and effects of what happened. Research by the Guardian has challenged some of the assumptions about the rioters. For example, most of those charged lived locally, and were not out-of-towners bussed in to make trouble as was suggested at the time. A high proportion of rioters were aged over 40, and came from the most deprived neighbourhoods in England with the worst health outcomes. Reports from youth courts indicate that many of the boys caught up in the violence joined in for reasons that were more social than political. Online rumour and misinformation played a significant role in stirring things up, as they did before a riot in Kirkby in 2023.

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